sunset from behind the wire

Monday, April 18, 2016

The Vulgar, Sleazy, Dishonest Game

The Hillary Clinton campaign is anemic and is in danger from a number of different things as it rolls through the first quarter of the 2016 election year. I have heard that it's possible that in the unlikely event that she's not indicted by the Department of Justice, she is considering taking on Bernie Sanders as her choice for vice president. It's one of the only ways that she could keep the Democrats who 'feel the Bern'.

As many of you who read this blog from time to time know, I think that the Clinton machine will be broken on the back of Hillary's criminal conduct. That would leave Bernie as the presumptive Democrat Party nominee -- but the mainstream will never let that happen. And the Dems will feel the Bern as that party tries to reconcile even more blatant gamesmanship to put somebody (likely John Kerry) into the Hillary slot.

However as f-ed up as the Democrats are, I find the fear and loathing on the part of the GOP Elites even more interesting as they make common cause with the mainstream media to try and 'stop Trump' at all costs. Truth told, the GOP elites would far rather see a John Kerry or a Hillary Clinton in the White House, because it would be business as usual and everything would be for sale.

It is that open disdain by our betters in the GOP and the voice of the progressive left (the mainstream media) for Trump, which makes him appeal over Cruz, who is married to Goldman Sachs. I'm not saying that the likes of Mitch McConnell or anyone else inside the Washington DC Beltway likes Cruz. They don't. But Cruz can be managed with some difficulty - and enough cash. The driving force behind Trump’s appeal is that people are sick of and intensely angry at all politicians, establishments, and circumstances that have placed them in the midst of the sorry state of affairs extant today. There is a discontent with the political correctness that is shoved down our throats every-single-day and Trump represents a relief from that.While Trump is not a gifted orator, he has a way of capturing the media (making it his bitch) and making people listen. People who have met him and who know him well consider Trump to be a decent, intelligent, likable person who has the ability to hire the right person to fix the problem. Therein lies his threat to the elites, and to the 'system' that they corrupted (and feel that they own). The very fact that the GOP created the "never Trump" despite the fact that he is the leading Republican candidate is telling. They have created a movement to destroy their front runner. When has that happened before? Never. That is their stance because Trump will "fire" people who are inept irrespective of their connection to the GOP. The idea of him shrinking government terrifies them.

(American Thinker) “…I’m embarrassed by the way the party is handling him…. They seem to be oblivious to the millions of people he’s attracting….[He is]...not afraid to negotiate with anyone....He is extremely win-oriented....[and] people underestimate Trump’s ability and cunning. He has brought to the fore important matters like immigration and jobs in a way that can no longer be ignored. So he will bring sharp focus on the issues he can exploit, and influence others to take positions and actions”...

I cannot imagine a scenario wherein anyone but Trump can beat Hillary. In the unlikely event that Cruz gets the first-ballot 1,237 delegates, I do not see a path for him to 270 electoral votes, and Trumpsters will stay home if Trump is in any way denied the nomination for an establishment choice.

I can only WISH that Clinton would be forced out. She should be in jail already.

I do not trust Trump. I get the feeling he is only in this for him, and not really for the country. His comment on building a bigger ballroom annoyed me. There is nothing wrong with our White House other than the people who have been occupying it.

Is it really a problem that Heidi Cruz works for Goldman Sachs? I need to understand this because right now he is my preference right now.

And the GOP did manage to destroy their front runner in 2008 when they chose McCain instead of Mitt Romney, and then McCain basically stopped running in the middle of the campaign, giving the presidency to the Socialist in the office now.

I would love to see government cut in half, and I would love to see Congress take a walk. I would especially like for them to not be able to give themselves a pay raise. They don't deserve anything for the job they have been doing for the last 20 or 30 years; and with all the childish behavior I feel they owe us BACK their pay for the last 16 years minimum.

You never sat in the East wing of the White House have you? The Ballroom. It's very small. The first time that I was there, it shocked me. It will seat a hundred for dinner, but that's about it. You can set up about 300 chairs. I was never cool enough to eat there (they set up a sandwich bar in the back), but I have been there for meetings.

I have avoided trashing Cruz on this blog partly because he might be able to win the nomination and I may end up supporting him over Kerry/Clinton/Sanders, whoever. Cruz is one of the Harvard Club of insiders, married to a managing director of Goldman Sachs. The Republicans don't like or trust him and neither do the Democrats. Ted has few "friends". Trump understands the system and paid to play, but I think that he has 'purer' intentions than Cruz does. He's not in it to become rich, and I think that he wants to fix a badly broken system. Trump and Cruz are both smart. Cruz gets his money from the bankers and Trump earned his.

Of the two, Ted is far more "owned" than Donald is. To his credit, I don't think that Bernie Sanders is "owned". Hillary is simply pay to play. It's all about the cash to her.

Being close to the beast doesn't necessarily mean that you understand it. Cruz says the right things. So did Rubio. Both men were owned by other men (and women) the same way that Obama is owned. Trump isn't owned. So I'll vote for him given the field and choices.

Just getting back to this response, and glad to hear you have plans to do some jeep trails up in the San Juans. I'm in Virginia at the moment, but should be back in the "14er" state by then and ready to hear your harrowing Donneresque tales of survival in the frozen high country over beers.

BTW, thanks for the blog link on your left hand margin. Appreciate it! I'll try to get a Virtual Mirage link up on the Grunt blog pronto.

I am still surprised to see Reinz Preibus drawing a paycheck from the RNC. The guy has managed to piss off just about everyone outside of the Establishment, to include The Donald. Not quite sure how Reinz and Ted get along, but I suspect a bit better than with Trump.

Both parties are seeing low points in their support from the base. Dems see the party bigshots getting rich by getting in bed with evil corporations, and not sharing their goodies with the mob. Bernie will do just that.

The GOP feels betrayed by promises made and broken by just about every elected Republican on Capitol Hill and especially by leaders McConnell and Ryan (and Ryan's predecessor, Boehner).

Torches and pitchforks are flying off the shelves at Home Depot and Lowe's. It's about time.

The Republican party has been committing slow seppuku with a dull butter knife since the 1990s. They tried to play the "we're just like Democrats" game so long, they have no direction except to continue dicing themselves across the stomach until all their guts spill out. Considering they've switched from a dull butter knife to a somewhat sharpened, dirty razor blade, they may self-destruct sooner than later.

I see two parties coming out of the GOP. One takes the place of the old Democrat Party since they Dems have gone collectivist and the other is a conservative party that embraces the Libertarians. The Dems could split as well depending on how they manage the Clinton fall.

They won't let the power go without a fight and it will take another party. You shouldn't put new wine in old bottles, or something like that.

In my heart I really don't want a third party dividing things, but I don't know how you fix the power broker issue without it. Even a third party would attract its share of power hungry curs, but maybe you could start out with a structure that offers a clean slate and try and police the cleanliness?

Reagan's biggest failure was accepting Shrub I as his replacement, even though it was exceptionally clear that he had NOT changed from the Rockefeller Republican sewage that he was in the 1980 campaign. Hopefully if Trump wins the nomination and then the general election, he won't make a similar mistake.

The establishment pushed GB1 onto Reagan. It was the price of admission to the game. Without somebody like GB1 looking over his shoulder, they wouldn't have accepted Reagan. The Reagan team did a remarkably good job because they were competent. It's a strange thing to find in the Beltway, but they were. Casey at CIA upended the place and made it work, for example. Baker, Schultz, etc. were good at their jobs.

A Trump presidency would require the same sort of talent and The Donald would need to calm down a bit. I think that Trump believed that if he was the leader, that the Party would accept him. They could only do that if he wallowed in the corruption and was reliably corrupt himself. He isn't. So they want "anyone but Trump". Anyone who has been around the place understands that is the key to the kingdom - reliable corruption. The Clintons have been reliably corrupt so Hillary is the one that they want. Bernie is not corrupt. He's a true believer. He's a collectivist, but he believes in what he's doing and that is too dangerous to allow to exist.

Obama rarely meets with his cabinet. Notice, with the exception of Shillary, the number of cabinet members that have bailed (Ken Salazar D CO for one). A little corporate structure and accountability from Trump could help a host of problems IMO.

I think that he will treat the Cabinet like a Board, which means regular meetings and discussions. Obama is an empty suit. He doesn't take intelligence briefings either, relying on his superior intellect.

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